Mona fartlek
A fixed 20-minute sequence of hard efforts with equal float recoveries, descending in length.
Also called: Steve Moneghetti's 20-minute fartlek.
Steve Moneghetti's session, and one of the most durable workouts in distance running because it fits in twenty minutes, needs no track, and self-regulates: the efforts shorten exactly as fatigue builds. The floats are floats, not jogs — running them too slowly turns a continuous 20-minute effort into a set of disconnected intervals and loses most of the point.
The session
Shown at a 4:00 marathon reference — 42 min total, about 6.7 km, including 20 min of quality work.
Warm-up
- 12 min easy (6:43–7:24/km)
Main set
- 2 × (90 s @ 5:04/km (10K) + 90 s float @ 6:43/km (easy))
- 4 × (60 s @ 4:48/km (5K) + 60 s float @ 6:43/km (easy))
- 4 × (30 s @ 4:36/km (3K) + 30 s float @ 6:43/km (easy))
- 4 × (15 s @ 4:23/km (rep) + 15 s float @ 6:43/km (easy))
Cool-down
- 10 min easy (6:43–7:24/km)
Why this session works
Moneghetti’s 20-minute classic: 2×90 s, 4×60 s, 4×30 s, 4×15 s with equal-time floats. Descending surges hit threshold through 3K effort in one tidy package.
Source: Gunnarsson & Bangsbo 2012; Australian coaching canon (Moneghetti). Training phase: build.
Run it at your own paces
Open the workout generator and enter a recent race time — every rep length, recovery and target pace is recalculated for your fitness, and the session exports to .fit for a Garmin watch.
Frequently asked questions
What is a mona fartlek?
A fixed 20-minute sequence of hard efforts with equal float recoveries, descending in length. Steve Moneghetti's session, and one of the most durable workouts in distance running because it fits in twenty minutes, needs no track, and self-regulates: the efforts shorten exactly as fatigue builds.
How long is this session?
At a 4:00 marathon reference it comes to 42 min and about 6.7 km, of which 20 min is prescribed quality work. The generator scales both to your own paces, so a faster runner covers more ground in the same time.
Who is this workout for?
It is written for the build phase of a marathon build. The distances shown suit a 4:00 marathoner; enter your own recent race time in the generator and every rep length and target pace is recalculated for you.
More fartlek and combination sessions
- Fartlek — Varied faster efforts inside a continuous run, with no track and no fixed structure.
- 10-20-30 workout — Repeated cycles of 30 seconds easy, 20 seconds moderate and 10 seconds near-sprint.
- Combination workout — Threshold, then interval, then repetition work in a single session — three gears in one run.
- Cutdown blocks — Long blocks that shorten and speed up through the session.